From Garbage to Glitter
Status: Restored
Date: 24-Nov-2024
Comments: 0
My local indoor carpet track was dismantled in 2021, so I had nowhere to race my 1/12 pan car.
(For those wondering, it was a Kyosho Plazma LM, which has a longer wheelbase than normal for morr scale-accurate bodies and can fit standard 1/10 scale batteries and electronics.)
Therefore I decided to sell it and use its electronics (11.5 brushless motor, LiHV batteries and massively overpowered brushless servo meant for 1/8 cars) to power the most ridiculous car I could possibly build. Project T.U.R.D. (Tamiya Ultimate Rampage Device) was born.
I came across this newly built Candy Green edition Grasshopper at the same store from which I bought my 1/12 car, and traded in the latter. Project T.U.R.D. was essentially a poor man's Mad Bull: it was fitted with 1/10 stadium truck wheels and tyres mounted on hex adapters at the rear and Lunchbox steering knuckles at the front. Grasshopper 2 front arms and homemade extensions at the rear allowed me to fit oil shocks taken from a Mini Inferno parts car, while the steering was beefed up with steel turnbuckles and a High Torque servo saver.
The result was an absolute evil handling car which only drove well on sand or very loose dirt ; it was some of the most fun I have ever had with any RC car. The only real negative was its fragility, the front suspension and hard plastic body are not meant to take the abuse the T.U.R.D. was subjected to, so I decided to retire it and replace it with something more durable (the DT-01 based Project Sad Bull).
The car has been treated to a full restoration and fitted with original, functional 1980s electrics as seen in the photos and is run occasionally. Everything is as good as new despite its age.
Minor battle scars give it a more vintage look.
If you liked those pictures, you should see these...
Project Sad Bull